• It is always handy to take someone along; shopping is more fun with a friend, right? They can always have an extra eye on something you may have missed, my friends have always spotted things they thought fitted my character. And of course you’ll need that second opinion on difficult purchases, when you’re not sure if you really like that bag or if it’s something that escaped from Jurassic Park! Funny thing though, I had the exact opposite experience once! I found a pair of brand new 80s black pumps, with metallic pink touches, my aunt hated them but I insisted that I liked them; I actually wore them to a wedding and felt like a superstar. What I’m trying to say is, it’s important to have a second opinion when you’re in doubt, but stick to your instincts when you need to. At Abdali, instinct is all you need!
(Picture: "Simple trick: use rubber bands on oversized jacket/coat sleeves to keep them up and give them the shabby messy look you see in the picture." Dress: banana republic, thrifted for 2 JDs. Blazer: stolen from grandma's closet. clutch: been in the family since the 50s.)
• My favorite tip of all is experiment, as it’s the fun part. You can create dozens of looks by mixing and matching thrifted pieces with more expensive retail items and look like you’re wearing couture! Or maybe you can play around with different styles with a little amount of money until you find the style you can spend more money on. There’s also the interesting experience of shopping at a flea market, you can’t decide if you like it or not until you really try it. Besides, it’s good practice for your eye, weather you can imagine the items you find on different outfits. This can be fun for guys too! The place is full of interesting items for men to experiment with, from vintage patterned shirts to retro denim to unique jackets, you name it! A friend of mine created a whole retro punk look just from items from Abdali. He rocked it!
• Last but not least, be sure of the hems and seams of the items before you buy, there may be a tear that you didn’t notice at first glance, or it may have a missing button, or a broken zipper, don’t neglect any detail, it’s better to be disappointed then and there if the item is worn or torn than later when you’ve already bought it! If the defaux can be fixed, bargain for less, it’s a plus. And the most tip of all is: of course be sure to wash every item you buy before you wear it, or dry clean them, you can never be too sure!
Having gone through Abdali a million times experimenting bargaining methods, buying tons of items; some that fit, others that didn’t, some I never wore, some I threw away, and some that turned out to be the best buys of my entire closet, I can finally say that for a girl with a huge love for fashion, and a very unsupportive wallet, second-hand and flea market shopping have definitely had a huge impact on my sense of style. Besides, I find it a lot more fun and interesting to shop at Abdali than any other place, #mall, in Amman, I never expect what I might end up buying, and the possibilities are countless! So, for those of you who have shopped at Abdali before and those of you who haven’t yet, I hope these pointers based on a most joyful time of “shop” and error, turn out to be useful. I guess all I can say now is: happy shopping, and hope to see you there, and lets hope you and don’t end having our hands on the same on item, cause I’ll get the cat out then!
The End